A Royal Night Out
| writer = | starring = | music = Paul Englishby | cinematography = Christophe Beaucarne | editing = Luke Dunkley | production companies = | distributor = Lionsgate | released = | runtime = 97 minutes | country = United Kingdom | language = English | budget = | gross = $4.3 million }} A Royal Night Out is a 2015 British romantic comedy-drama film directed by Julian Jarrold and written by Trevor de Silva and Kevin Hood. The film stars Sarah Gadon as the young Princess Elizabeth, who with Princess Margaret (Bel Powley) ventures out of Buckingham Palace to enjoy the VE Day celebrations. Plot On VE Day in 1945, as peace is declared across Europe and London is celebrating, Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret are allowed to join the celebrations, against the Queen's wishes. The King, impressed by Elizabeth's pleading, asks her to report back on the people's feelings towards him and his midnight speech on the radio. Each girl, incognito, is chaperoned by an army officer with an itinerary to be back at Buckingham Palace by 1 a.m. Soon realising the Queen's planned itinerary does not fulfil their expectations of fun and meeting the ordinary people, Margaret is the first to slip away from her escort, followed by Elizabeth. The princesses are separated on two different buses. Margaret is befriended by a naval officer seeking to take advantage of what he believes is just an ordinary girl, and Elizabeth by an airman who is absent without leave. Margaret is led by her naval officer into a world of nightclubs, gambling, spiked drinks and brothels. Elizabeth and her airman have their own adventures trying to catch up with Margaret, which take them far beyond the 1 a.m. deadline into the early hours of the following morning. Cast * Sarah Gadon as Princess Elizabeth * Bel Powley as Princess Margaret * Jack Reynor as Jack Hodges * Rupert Everett as King George VI * Emily Watson as Queen Elizabeth * Roger Allam as Stan * Ruth Sheen as Joan Hodges, Jack's Mum * Jack Laskey as Captain Pryce * Fiona Skinner as Annie * John Neville as Spiv * Samantha Baines as Mary Relation to actual events The two officer escorts and the airman in the screenplay were fictional creations. In reality, the princesses in an organised group of 16 went out at 10 p.m. to mingle with revellers, and returned to Buckingham Palace at 1 a.m. Release A Royal Night Out was released in the United Kingdom on 8 May 2015 and on DVD on 7 September 2015. The film was released in the United States on 4 December 2015, and released on DVD on 3 May 2016. Critical reception On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a 71% rating, based on 51 reviews, with an average rating of 5.8/10. The site's consensus states: "Undeniably slight yet thoroughly charming, A Royal Night Out uses a fascinating historical footnote as a springboard into a fun dramedy diversion." Metacritic reports a 59 out of 100 rating, based on 16 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". References External links * * * * * Category:2015 films Category:British films Category:English-language films Category:2010s comedy-drama films Category:2010s historical films Category:2010s romantic comedy films Category:British comedy-drama films Category:British historical films Category:British romantic comedy films Category:Films directed by Julian Jarrold Category:Films set in 1945 Category:Films about Elizabeth II Category:Films set in England Category:Films shot in England Category:Cultural depictions of George VI Category:Lions Gate Entertainment films